1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to transport aircraft galley systems, and more particularly, to control systems for cooling food carts within the galley system.
2. Description of Related Art
Aircraft galley systems for modern transport aircraft incorporate food carts which are cooled to prevent food spoilage prior to use by the cabin attendants for distribution of food to the passengers. These food carts have in the past been interfaced with cold air supply systems in the galley designed to cool the interiors of the food carts. Such cool air distribution systems were generally co-located with the balance of the galley and interface to the food carts by means of gaskets connecting the food carts to a plenum containing the cool air.
As space in modern aircraft cabins has become more at a premium and more efficient means of cooling the carts has become necessary, a need for alternatives to such systems emerged. Thus, it has become more desirable to remove refrigeration equipment from the galley compartment and to find other means to properly cool the food carts without locating the entire refrigeration system in the galley area. Furthermore, FDA rulings lowered the required temperature at which the interior of the food carts must be kept to prevent food spoilage. It is important that any system that interfaces with either food or the cabin area can be configured to provide a wide range of cooling capacity.
Such cooling systems require control systems to maintain temperatures within the food carts within precise limits to prevent food spoilage or freezing. The present invention satisfies these and numerous other requirements for transport aircraft.